The Enhancement

"We all mourn in different ways."

Writer: Aaron Douglas

Format: Audio

Released: May 2022

Series: The Robots 5.01

Featuring: Liv, Tula

Synopsis

The Enhancement chips are the next stage of personal security for the citizens of Kaldor – and following her experiences with identity theft, no-one is keener to get involved with them than Tula. Liv, however, has other concerns. The Sons of Kaldor have been suspiciously quiet. But is this something to be worried about? Or is the true threat much closer to home?

Verdict

The Enhancement was a great start to the fifth series of The Robots! There was a lot going on in the previous boxset and I enjoyed the follow on from The Janus Deception where Tula was concerned as having her identity stolen by the data wraith was a big ordeal. It had clearly impacted her in a big way so she was actually very much on board for extra security when it came to the enhancement chip. I do understand her sentiment there, but considering who her sister is I am surprised Liv allowed her to go through with it without some strong security vetting. It was obvious that the enhancement chip was going to come with consequences or at least some sort of technical glitch that would look like technologically deficient, when it was actually intentional. The memory loss was really intriguing given that it was instant and I must admit that I could believe Kirran where her defence was coming from. Those impacted were told to rest for at least three days after having the enhancement chip fitted, but here they were just mere hours later complaining. Could it be the technical version of side effects? It was believable in my opinion, but Liv of course wasn't having it. I loved that about her because she wasn't taking it. I wouldn't have expected anything less either. Her relationship with Kirran is understandably testing and that was put to full force here as she met up with her on no less than three occasions! Volar Crick returning in emphatic fashion was really strong stuff and he had clearly gone through a lot since the events of Love Me Not. That's not exactly a surprise given what happened there with his wife so it made sense for him to be the one publicly confessing to Skellen's murder. Liv doesn't find that believable in the slightest and I'm loving how she is out to cause trouble for the Company and beyond at just about every turn. She's getting a lot done in this year break from the TARDIS! Causing chaos is her speciality on Kaldor. I thought it was amusing that she wasn't interested in the Kaldor Nights television show though. Volar as the creator of the enhancement chip was good as he comes across as a bit of a devious character and that's certainly a role that suits him. His own suffering of memory loss meaning that he didn't remember meeting Liv was an immediate red flag, but given what occurred with his wife could it be a means of grief or mourning? The mind can blank out things so it was feasible I guess. Liv again though wasn't having it. I like how this feels like a set up episode of things to come as the enhancement chip has not gone away and with it being compulsory that's going to bring about some serious issues which I can't wait to come into the foreground. I also must note my appreciation for the line about Toos and Poul being out there continuing their own work when it came to the Robots. That was a nice touch and it's a shame that they don't feature in the last two series. Overall, a really strong start to the series! 

Rating: 8/10